The Scientific Turnabout
by EmeraldWings1992
Summary: Apollo has finally worked up the nerve to ask Ema out, and she said yes! However, their date at Gatewater Land goes wrong when a dead body is found. The main suspect? Apollo Justice! DONE!
1. Paternal Advice

A/N: Hi guys! Here's another story! This one will definitely be the last one before I go back to school. Sorry!

By the way… can you guys believe I've written like… six, in just five weeks? I'm surprised at myself!

Well, enough bragging, haha. This tale will bounce between Apollo's, Ema's, and Phoenix's POVs. I also decided to do this plot because I realized that every main character has been accused of murder (even Edgeworth and Phoenix's ancestor, Ryu)… except for Apollo! It's his turn now!

This story is kind of a sequel to my other stories "Turnabout Escape" and "Apollo's Psyche-Locks", so… might be a good idea to read those first. This happens a few months after those tales, making Apollo 26, by the way.

…

Chapter One – Paternal Advice

 _Apollo_

 **August 1, 8:08pm**

 **Creamy Delights Ice Cream Parlor**

Spending the day with Dad, just the two of us, were always interesting, and always ended at our favorite ice cream shop.

"Dad, stop it!" I laughed, putting at hand to my mouth as milkshake tried to escape through my nose. Dad laughed as well, stopping with his impression of Mr. Edgeworth's angry look. It was scary accurate, I might add, and I only just noticed how much it looked like a zombie with a stomachache…

"But I'm _trying_ to get milkshake to come out of your nose!" he shot back through his laughter. I managed to swallow my mouthful of milkshake before bursting into even more laughter.

" _Why!?_ " I demanded.

"Well," he said, calming down a bit. "I always got milkshake to shoot out your nose when you were younger and we'd come here," he explained with a grin.

"Oh, and it's tradition now?" I demanded.

"Yep!" he replied, and we both dissolved into laughter too hard to talk.

Finally, after about five minutes, we calmed down, more for the need to breath then anything else. I rubbed my chest, taking deep breaths. Dad did the same.

Once able to breath, I leaned back in my chair thoughtfully.

"Hey Dad?" I asked.

"Hm?"

"Can I ask your advice?"

"About what?" he asked, leaning forward. I saw a flash of concern, and chuckled.

"No, Dad, it's nothing to be worried about. Promise!"

"Okay, okay!" he chuckled, holding his hands up. I looked down at my milkshake, fiddling with the straw.

"Well… how did you ask Mom out?" I asked. A slow smirk crossed his face, one I knew proceeded teasing, but he answered my question none the less.

"Me and her didn't really start talking until she was helping me clean up after shows, and I just… sort or asked her one night. I didn't even really think about it," he explained. I sighed, propping my chin on my hand.

"And if I _am_ already thinking about it too much?" I asked.

"This isn't about that Forensic Scientist, is it?" Dad asked innocently.

"No!" I snapped, though I knew my face betrayed me from the heat that flared across my cheeks. Dad laughed hard at that.

"Well, what you _can_ do… is just ask her. You don't have to do anything special, you know," he pointed out. I thought about that.

"Well, that's all well and good, but what about the actual _date_?" I asked. Dad looked thoughtful.

"Do something fun. It's kind of cliché to do a dinner and movie, so try something different."

"Hm… what about the amusement park or something?" I asked. He nodded thoughtfully.

"That'll work," he said, before smirking. "Just don't get too… scientific," he said in a voice the suggested WAY too much, one of his eyebrows creeping upwards.

"DAD!" I groaned, burying my burning face in my hands as he roared with laughter again.

 **August 2, 11:57am**

 **Police Department**

 **Forensic Lab 6**

"Ema?" I called, knocking lightly on the plexiglass door of her lab. I felt like a total dweeb, holding a bouquet of delicate, blue flowers. I nearly darted back down the hall and shoved them in the trashcan, when the door opened.

"Oh, hi Apollo," the brunette said with a smile, crossing her arms and leaning against the door frame. Her eyes fell on the bouquet in my hands. "Evidence for a case?"

"Huh? Oh! No, no, they're um… it's um…" I blushed brightly, before just holding the flowers out. "They're for you…"

"Huh?" Ema asked, taking the flowers in one hand, the other on her cheek in surprise. I just managed a weak smile. She looked at them for a moment, then up at me. "Um… thank you? C-come in," she said, stepping back. I followed her into the lab, looking around at everything. One of her machines were humming softly, no doubt analyzing evidence for a case.

"So… what can I do for you?" she asked, pulling what looked like a large beaker out, filling it with water, and setting it on her desk, putting the flowers inside. I smiled.

It was so… so _Ema_. I wouldn't be surprised if she had scientific décor all over her home.

"Well…" I hesitated, leaning against a counter and looking at her. "I was just wondering if you wanted to go to Gatewater Land this Friday," I said, my words a little rushed. Surely, she knew this was coming, what with the flowers and everything.

"Did you… do you mean like… a date?" Ema asked in surprise. I blushed, rubbing the top of my head.

"Well, yeah, but if you don't want to…"

"I didn't say that," she said softly. I looked up again to find her bright, dark green eyes locked on me. She smiled warmly. "I think Gatewater Land sounds awesome, actually."

I was flying as we got the details worked out.

 _She said yes! She said yes!_

It wasn't until I left, to let her continue her work, that I realized how rushed and awkward I was when I asked her out.

 _I bet Dad was a lot more smooth then me when he asked Mom out…_

…

A/N:First chapter, done!

"Dahlia's are spicy flowers, and their meanings range from a sign of warning, to change, to travel, to even a portent of betrayal." Good job, Capcom. I found this while I was trying to find if their was a flower that symbolized intelligence (obviously I didn't find one).

Anyone who read "Turnabout Escape" recognize the scene where Apollo asks Ema out? He's a lot more like his dad then he realized! (Hint: Chapter 4).

Also, and I don't know why, but the idea of fathers and sons going out for ice cream is just so sweet to me, so that's Zeus's and Apollo's favorite thing to do when hanging out!


	2. The Amusement Park

A/N: Here's the next chapter, from Ema's POV! I'm sorry if she'll seem slightly out of character compared to her Apollo Justice appearance, but it is my belief that she's so bitter in that game due to being a detective.

In my stories, she went back and took the exam to become a Forensic Scientist, and passed, thus being called as such. That's why she's not bitter anymore.

I realized I only ever explained all of this in one story, and that was _The Phantom Turnabout_.

By the way, anyone notice exactly how similar the Feys and the Gramaryes are? Just a thought, haha. Magnifi is the Morgan of the Gramaryes in personality, haha.

Ahem… moving on.

…

Chapter Two – The Amusement Park

 _Ema_

 **August 4, 12:02pm**

 **Ema's Apartment**

I've never been the kind of girl who worried about things like outfits, hair, and makeup.

After all, if I wanted to impress someone, I wanted to impress them with my intelligence! With Science!

So that led me to question myself when I stood in the middle of my bedroom, every article of clothing I owned scattered on the bed and floor, while I desperately tried to figure out which colors would look best on me, what should I wear, how should I do my hair, should I wear makeup?

"Ugh! This is ridiculous!" I snapped, throwing a navy blue shirt across the room with a huff. I then sighed and sat down, staring at everything, before getting an idea.

 _I should approach this… scientifically!_

It was the hottest day of the month so far, hovering around the 80s.

Long sleeves were out.

We were going to the amusement park, most likely riding rides.

Skirts and flip-flops were out.

 _As are tank-tops. I don't want to flash Apollo on our first date if we go on any upside-down rides._

The thought sent my cheeks ablaze.

That left jeans.

 _Too casual._

Tee-shirts.

 _Too casual._

Short-sleeved blouses.

 _Maybe? That pink and green one is cute, and it would match my eyes_ and _my glasses…_

Shorts.

 _Nope. I look bad in those._

And capris.

I finally decided on the pink blouse, trimmed with green as the top. The collar was low enough to let my collarbone peak out, but no further. A pair of black carpis adorned my legs, and I pulled my hair back into a high ponytail, leaving just my bangs over my forehead, and two locks to frame my face. I finally decided on my normal pair of black heals, with the ribbon around the ankle, an no makeup.

No doubt, sweat would ruin it.

 _Knock-knock!_

My head snapped first towards the door, then down at the watch I was currently snapping around my wrist.

 _12:46_

Well, statistically speaking, people tend to be about fifteen minutes early for their dates. I grab my usual bag, which doubles as a purse, and adjust my glasses on my head, before opening the door.

Apollo looked down from where he was fixing one of his spikes at hearing the door, and smiled.

"Wow, Ema… you look great," he said with a weak smile. I smiled warmly back.

"You don't half bad yourself. I see you're still into red though," I teased with a smile.

Rather then his normal suit-vest ensemble, he was dressed in a white tee-shirt, with a red hoodie-jacket, the sleeves rolled up to just his elbows, a pair of jeans ( _Guys have totally different casual rules then girls. It's so not fair!_ ), and a pair of red sneakers.

As usual, his bracelet adorned his left wrist.

Apollo chuckled at the teasing, before holding out his hand.

"Shall we? I um… got us train tickets," he said. I smiled at that. Apollo didn't drive, which is common in Los Angeles, and driving anywhere near Gatewater Land was hard on the car, thanks to the stop-and-go nature of the traffic around there.

"Sure," I said, stepping out, locking the door, then taking his hand, letting him lead me.

"You know, Ema…" he said thoughtfully.

"Hm?"

"It's a little odd, seeing you without your white jacket. I don't think I've ever seen you without it before," he said with a chuckle.

"And I don't think I've ever seen you dressed do down before, so we're even," I replied, and he burst out laughing at that. I laughed as well, butterflies dancing in my stomach.

Scientifically speaking, there weren't real butterflies in my stomach. When the body switches into 'action mode' (like, when being around someone they'd like to kiss. A lot.), the body slows down non-essential systems and works other's overtime, explaining also why my heard has sped-up. The stomach is a non-essential, so it sends different signals to our brains. It's the vagus nerve that mediates this response in the body (also sometimes called 'fight-or-flight response').

My vagus nerve was currently working overtime, especially when we stopped laughing, and Apollo brushed his thumb over my knuckles, probably unconsciously.

The train ride was uneventful. We were both quiet (I obviously wasn't the only nervous one) for most of the trip. Neither one of us wanted to talk about work, but unfortunately, that was mostly our lives…

Well, there is one thing…

"How's your family?" I asked, looking up at Apollo. He looked surprised for a minute, before smiling.

"They're good. Constantly trying to get me to come up on stage though," he playfully scowled, and I laughed. "It was bad enough when it was just Trucy, but now it's all three of them!"

"That must be so hard," I laughed, and he shrugged. I studied him for a minute, before laughing again.

"You finally caved, didn't you!?" I said between giggles.

"No!" Apollo protested, though his cheeks had turned a dark shade of red, matching his jacket nicely.

"I don't believe you!"

"Alright, fine! I did! But… but… Trucy was giving me those big eyes, and Mom and Dad looked so sad because they needed an assistant…" he sighed, his spikes drooping forward. I giggled more.

"You'll do great," I said warmly. "After all, you're a Gramarye _and_ a Justice."

"Yeah," he said with a weak smile.

The train finally pulled into our stop, and we joined the crowed rushing through the doors, holding hands once more to not get separated.

Gatewater Land was built years ago by the Gatewater Company, the same people who own all the fancy hotels, and dedicated it to the police, meaning it was very police themed.

It was also kind of expensive, but before I could pull out my wallet, Apollo had already paid for us both.

"I could have paid, you know," I said as we walked more into the park. Apollo grinned, taking my hand again, and my vagus nerve went to work once more.

"True, but this is a date. Which means I'm paying," he said. I sighed, but shrugged.

"Alright, alright. But I pay next time, Justice," I said. Apollo grinned more at me.

"Next time? There will be a next time? As in… a second date?"

I blushed.

"Maybe. If you behave," I replied, before looking around. I heard him snicker, but ignored him.

We walked around a bit before finally deciding to go see one of the shows. It was starting in ten minutes, and it was apparently an animal show, put on by the Berry Big Circus.

Amidst the cheering and excitement, Apollo smoothly part his arm around me. I grinned and leaned against him.

Only for the Blue Badger to come over to us.

"Um…" Apollo managed, before the Badger held up a sign.

"' _Raffles! Enter to win a prize!'"_ I read. Apollo shrugged, removing his arm from around me, and taking the offered clip board.

"Why not?" he said, handing me a pen and slip too. I chuckled, filling out my name and cell-number (incase I won), before handing it back to the Blue Badger. He slipped both into a container before waving again, heading off to bother someone else. Apollo smiled and wrapped an arm around me again.

…

The show was fantastic, and the rides were a lot of fun. I even got Apollo, who is actually _scared_ of the upside down rides, to go on a few roller coasters, and despite the fear, he had a lot of fun.

"So, why are you scared of those rides?" I asked as we walked, hand-in-hand, to the food carts near the Wild-West part of the park. Apollo shrugged.

"I don't know, I just feel like I'm going to fall out of them," he replied. I laughed.

"But they strap you in so tightly! And they test the rides so much and won't open it until there's about only a 0.01% chance you'll fall out."

"With my luck, I'd be that 0.01% who _did_ fall out," Apollo said, and I couldn't help but laugh at that.

Once we had our pizza (more grease then pizza, really) and sodas, we sat. I picked at a pepperoni on mine.

"This looks very unhealthy," I said as Apollo took a bit of his. He looked at me, quirking one of his odd eyebrows before swallowing.

"Like the amount of Snackeroos you eat are?" he asked teasingly. I frowned in thought before looking up, picking up my slice of pizza.

"Touché," I replied, pointing my slice at him before turning it and taking a bite. The flavors of cheese, tomato, pepperoni, and garlic filled my mouth, and I closed my eyes for a moment.

 _This is the best pizza I've ever had!_

"Carnival food is the best," Apollo said with a grin, before taking another bite of his pizza. I only nodded in agreement.

Just then, Apollo's phone went off. He pulled out the red cell and opened it, reading a text.

His eyes widened, and he choked on his pizza.

"Hey, what is it?" I asked. He quickly looked around before standing abruptly.

"I-I have to go. I'll be right back. Don't follow me!" he said, before dashing off, leaving behind his half-eaten pizza, and a very confused almost-girlfriend.

…

A/N: Ema is too scientific. You know how much research I had to do, just to figure out why you get the "butterfly feeling"!? Haha.

Well, their date _was_ going good. What was Apollo sent that would make him react like that?

You'll find out in the next chapter!


	3. Why Now?

A/N: I meant to say at the end of last chapter, Apollo's outfit in this story is the same as his DLC outfit in _Dual Destinies_ , but without the book bag.

Also, I was going to try to do the time stamp thing, but I think I'll just do the date at the beginning of the chapter, and when it switches. No more location or time!

…

Chapter Three – Why Now!?

 _Apollo_

 **August 4**

"Touché," Ema replied to my teasing, pointing her slice of pizza at me before taking a bit. He eyes widened for a moment in surprise before closing in pleasure at the taste. I grinned.

"Carnival food is the best," I declared, and at the moment, I felt that way. I took another bite of my pizza while Ema nodded.

 _Today is going great! Better then I could have hoped!_ I thought happily.

Just then, my phone went of. I pulled it out to find a text message.

From an anonymous sender.

 _Strange…_

I opened it.

' _Come to the mirror hall of the Haunted House in 2 minutes, or someone dies. Do NOT tell your girlfriend, or someone dies._ '

My eyes widened, and I choked on my pizza.

"Hey, what is it?" Ema asked with a look of concern. I dropped the slice back to my plate and stood. The Haunted House was clear across the Amusement Park! How was I supposed to make it there in two minutes!?

"I-I have to go. I'll be right back. Don't follow me!" I said, before sprinting off, trying to make it in time.

 _Why now!? What the hell is going on!?_ I thought, trying to lengthen my strides, while also dodging around confused and angry people.

Somehow, I made it to the Haunted House and inside, to Mirror Hall, in a minute and a half.

Panting hard, I looked around. True to it's name, the walls were covered with mirrors, and my disheveled reflection looked back at me from all kinds of angles. It was creepy.

Perfect for a Haunted House.

"Who the hell are you?" a voice suddenly demanded from behind. I turned to find myself face to face with a woman who had to be in her early 30s. She was about the same height as me, with long black hair that cascaded down her back to her hips, and dark brown eyes. "Are you the one who sent me that letter?"

"Letter, what letter?" I demanded, turning to fully face her. "I'm only here because-" my words turned into a strangled cry of alarm as someone, a man in a mask, rushed up behind the woman and slammed her in the back. A blade suddenly ripped through the left side of her chest. I caught her as she stumbled forward. She looked up at me with confused eyes.

"Wha…?" she asked, before coughing. I winced as blood splattered into my face, before looking up at her attacker.

He was holding a bat, and staring directly at me. I carefully lowered the woman down, backing up. He rushed forward.

I turned to run.

 _CRACK!_

Pain flared in my head, and lights popped in front of my eyes. I stumbled forward, somehow managing to keep my balance, and ran for all I was worth.

The corridors of the Haunted House twisted and turned. I was confused, nauseatingly dizzy, probably from the blow to my head.

Finally I turned left, into a door, and slammed it shut behind me. The room looked like a storage room. I stumbled over to some boxes.

...My eyesight was starting to dim...

...I wedged myself behind the boxes...

...Everything went dark...

…

A/N: Shorter chapter, but oh well!

Poor Polly!


	4. The Body

A/N: I'm starting to feel like a lot of my character's get hit in the head…

…Is that a bad thing…?

…

Chapter Four – The Body

 _Ema_

 **August 4**

 _Don't follow him? Don't follow him!? What the hell does he mean, don't follow him!?_ I thought after I chased after Apollo. He quickly vanished, though, having a head start on me, due to my shock, and how fast he was running, almost as though for his life.

Once I lost sight of him, I had to resort to asking around, which took even longer.

Finally though, I stood in front of the Haunted House.

 _Guess he's in there. Why?_ I thought.

Screaming, one voice, suddenly erupted from the building. My vagus nerve jumped into high gear, although for a totally different reason then earlier.

From the entrance of the house, a sixteen year old boy, dressed like it was Halloween, came running. I caught his shoulders, pulling my badge from my bag.

"Dr. Ema Skye, Criminal Affairs," I told him. "What's going one?"

"Th-th-there's a… a dead…" he stammered, and I realized the bleach white look to his face had nothing to do with costume makeup.

"Take a deep breath," I instructed, and he did so. "Now, tell me as calmly as you can. What happened?"

"I-I was cl-cleaning and… and… Oh, Ms. Sokurblad!" he wailed. "She's dead! I saw her body, and it was bloody, and there was no pulse!"

"Okay, okay, calm down," I told him. "Do you have a cell phone?"

"Y-yes?"

"Good. Stay out here and call 911. I'm going to go investigate. Where was Ms… Sokurblad's? body?"

"Th-the mirror hall," he mumbled. I nodded, turning and running into the Haunted House, quickly finding the mirror hall.

It was a gruesome sight. I walked over, careful to not step in any blood, and pulled out a notebook, taking notes.

' _Victim: Caucasian Female. About 31-32 years old.'_

I knelt next to her. She was laying in a pool of her own blood.

' _Stab wound. Right side of back.'_

I noticed blood around her mouth.

' _Coughed up blood. Punctured lung?'_

I investigated more, taking notes along the way, when I noticed a dull, gold glint in Ms. Sokurblad's right hand. I stepped back and took plenty of pictures with my phone, before kneeling next to her hand again.

Pulling on a pair of gloves, I carefully turned her wrist.

What I found there made me gasp.

Apollo's bracelet.

 _What!?_

"Dr. Skye! There you are!" an enthusiastic voice boomed. I carefully turned the wrist back over, so it was in the exact position I found the body in, then stood, turning to face the officers who just walking it, with Detective Klu Hunter leading them.

Hunter was a tall, young man, having just been promoted less then a year ago to detective. He had short blond hair, dark green eyes, and his stance just exuded confidence.

He was young, idealistic, and enthusiastic about justice.

He was annoying.

"Detective," I said with a small nod.

"What did you find so far?" he asked. I opened my notebook again, reading off my notes to him, while one of the Forensic Officers moved around the body with white tape, outlining where she was found.

"Detective!" he said excitedly. Hunter and I both turned to see him holding up the bracelet, and my heart sank. "This was found in her right hand," the officer said.

"Good job, officer! No doubt it belongs to the Perp!" Hunter said excitedly. He then looked around at the rest of his officers. "I want two people to stay here with me and Dr. Skye and investigate the crime scene! You," he pointed to a different officer, "go lock down the park! The rest of you, search this Haunted House! We don't know if the Perp is still in the house or the park, but we will contain them!" he ordered.

"Yes sir!"

"The killer is most likely still in the Haunted House," one of the officers said. "Her body is still warm, and the blood hasn't dried yet."

"Good, good," Hunter said, turning back to investigate. I sighed, turning to the body as well.

 _Apollo, where are you? What happened?_

I knelt down next to the woman's left hand, and stopped.

"Detective. She left a message," I said. Hunter immediately came over.

"' _Red'_. What in the blazes could that mean?" Hunter mused. I bit the inside of my lip, getting an idea, and not liking it one bit. About fifteen minutes later, footsteps thundered down the hall, catching all of our attention.

One of the officers charged with searching the Haunted House skidded around the corner, his eyes bright with excitement.

"We found him! We found the killer!"

"Are you sure?" I demanded. The man nodded.

"Positive. He's unconscious, but he's covered in blood, and we didn't see any injuries on him. This way!"

"Stay here!" Hunter told the officers investigating the body as we followed the other officer. He lead us through the maze of a house before stopping next to a door that said ' _Authorized Personal Only'_.

He pushed open the door, and I gasped.

Half hidden behind boxes…

…was Apollo. There was blood splattered across his chest and face, and he was unconscious.

"No, this is wrong. He's not the killer," I said, turning to Hunter. He raised an eyebrow at me.

"What are you talking about, Dr. Skye? He's hiding somewhere he doesn't belong, covered in blood that's not his own, _and_ he's wearing red, like the victim's message states!"

"Plus he's missing his bracelet," a different officer said, pointing to Apollo's left wrist. "Isn't the one we found the same one he's always wearing?"

I clenched my teeth, angry.

 _What the hell were you doing, Apollo?_ I demanded silently.

"I still don't think it's him," I snapped, turning on my heel and marching back to the body, determined to find evidence to clear Apollo's name.

Unfortunately, everything was stacked against him.

After about an hour of searching and finding nothing, my phone began to ring. I pulled it out and answered.

"Hello?" I asked, cradling it between my ear and shoulder as I searched for fingerprints.

"Dr. Skye? This is Chief Prosecutor Edgeworth," the voice on the other line said, and my breath caught in my throat.

 _Mr. Edgeworth!_ I thought in a star struck way. Mr. Edgeworth was my idol, smooth and calm collected, with wit and quick logic.

"Hello, Mr. Edgeworth. Can I help you?"

"Yes. I'd like to see you in my office. ASAP," he said, before hanging up. I let my phone drop into my hand and looked at it in confusion.

…

"What do you mean, I'm suspended from the force!?" I demanded, slamming my hands down on Mr. Edgeworth's desk. The Chief Prosecutor just watched me calmly.

"You have too personal a connection to this case, which is clouding your judgment and not allowing you to see the facts properly," Mr. Edgeworth pointed out. "Detective Hunter says they've found definitive proof against Mr. Justice, yet you refuse to believe he's the killer. As a Forensic Scientist, you are in a position where you could tamper with that evidence."

"I would _never_ tamper—"

"I know this, Dr. Skye. But as we are still only a few years shy of the Dark Age of the Law, it is a policy that must be enforced," Mr. Edgeworth cut me off. I took a deep breath, standing.

"Why are you telling me this, sir, rather then the commissioner?"

"I volunteered." He stood from his chair, walking around his desk, and poured himself a cup of tea.

"With the case as it stands, I know of only one attorney who is willing to take this case, and who would have a chance of winning," he admitted, swirling the tea cup under his nose, appreciating the smell. "Perhaps, in the next week, you should keep yourself busy, Dr. Skye. Take up a hobby, or work with an old friend, perhaps?"

 _Work with an old… Wait!_ I realized exactly what Mr. Edgeworth was suggesting. It'd been years, but I could still do it, right?

And now that I'm suspended from the force…

"Okay, Mr. Edgeworth," I said, walking out of his office and heading straight to the one person I knew could help Apollo.

…

A/N: Oh Edgeworth, you crafty old begger you!

Time fore me to take a break!


	5. Investigation: Day 1

A/N: So this chapter was originally supposed to be the second half of the last chapter, but that would have made it WAY too long.

Chapters four and five are the only ones where it'll be from the same character's POV two chapters in a row.

Well, here we go!

…

Chapter Five – Investigation: Day 1

 _Ema_

 **August 4**

I ran up the steps two at a time, quickly getting to the door I needed, and slammed my hand against it multiple times. It was already six at night, and the first trial day was tomorrow at ten.

We didn't have much time to investigate.

The door open, revealing a short, petit brunette in a blue silk hat and cape.

Apollo's sister, Trucy.

"Is Mr. Wright here?" I panted, breathless from my sprint up the steps.

"Um, yeah? Wait, weren't you out with Polly?" she asked, stepping aside before I bowled her over.

Ignoring her question, I darted through the reception area, right into the office, and up to Mr. Wright's desk, slamming my hands down on it. He jumped about a foot in the air.

"Ema?"

"You have to help!"

"Huh?"

"It's Apollo," I said, forcing myself to calm down a bit so that I could explain. "We were at Gatewater Land, and all of a sudden, he rushed off, then next thing I know, a dead body is found, holding _his_ bracelet, he was found unconscious near the crime scene with blood on him, and now he's arrested and accused of murder."

" _What!?_ " Trucy gasped. Mr. Wright frowned, standing. "Trucy, call Zeus and Thalassa. Ema, is he still unconscious?"

"Um, I'm not sure. Last I saw of him, he was being taken away," I explained. Phoenix nodded.

"I'll go see. Obviously, I'm taking this case."

"I'm coming too," I said.

"Are you allowed? I mean, you work for the police, and usually—"

"I was suspended from the force," I said, cutting him off.

"You… were?"

"Yes. Remember that new policy? 'Any officer personnel who has a personal connection to the case, especially the defendant or victim, is to be suspend from duty until the case is resolved.' I guess going on a date with the defendant falls under that," I explained. Phoenix nodded.

"I'll say. Alright, you can come," he agreed, and I grinned.

 _Just like old times!_

…

Apollo was awake when we got to the Detention Center, but was currently being questioned. With no other choice, we decided to investigate the crime scene, where Detective Klu Hunter still was.

"Dr. Skye? I thought you were suspended. You can't be here," he said when seeing me. Mr. Wright put a hand on my shoulder.

"Actually, Detective, Ema is working as my investigation partner," he said, gaining the attention of the detective. Hunter's eyes widened.

"Phoenix Wright? We learned all about you in school, and how you can bluff through anything!" he said.

 _Nice backhand complement…_ I thought, thought I knew Hunter didn't mean anything by it. Mr. Wright chuckled weakly, rubbing the back of his neck.

"Right. Well, anyways, onto the case—"

"Oh… you took on this case?" And suddenly, Hunter looked and sounded disappointed.

"Well, yes…" Mr. Wright answered.

"That's why we're here," I added.

"Hm… well, I don't think you're going to win, no offense. There's too much evidence against Mr. Justice," Hunter explained, looking at his small notepad. I pulled mine out, ready to take notes for Mr. Wright.

"Why don't you just tell us? That way, we'll have a fighting chance in court tomorrow," Mr. Wright said with a smile, and I had to hide my grin. Most detectives wouldn't tell the DA anything, but Detective Klu Hunter, as I might have mentioned before, was idealistic; he was all about playing fair. Mr. Wright found the right button to hit, only minutes into meeting the guy, and jabbed it for all it's worth.

 _Impressive._

"Well… Alright. The victim's name is Ivana Sokurblad. She was stabbed in the back, through to the front, puncturing her right lung. Here's the autopsy report," he said, passing it over. Mr. Wright placed it into his bag, and I knew he would study it like crazy tonight.

"She left a message in blood, as can be seen in this picture," he showed us the picture of the word I had noticed earlier.

"'Red'. What does that mean?" Mr. Wright asked.

"It's our belief that she wrote down the color the killer was wearing," Hunter said. Mr. Wright looked over at me.

"Was he wearing red?" he hissed. I frowned slightly and nodded.

"Of course. What else would he wear?" I replied, neglecting to mention the fact that I thought Apollo look _really good_ in red.

After all, scientifically speaking, women were more attracted to a man in red, perhaps for it's underlying connotation of passion and sexiness.

 _Does Apollo know this, and wear red all the time because of that? If so, I find that even more attractive. He's using science!_

"You can keep that, I have two more copies," Hunter said, bringing my attention back to the current conversation. "Then there's the state Mr. Justice was found in." He passed over a second picture, showing Apollo sitting, unconscious, against the wall in the storage room where we found him, blood splattered across his chest and face.

"Ah. That's um… discriminating…" Mr. Wright mumbled, studying it, a hand to his chin.

"Keep that too. After all, you're going to need all the evidence you need."

"Who found the body?" Mr. Wright asked.

"That would be…" Hunter glanced at his notes. "A Mr. Morty Ishan. And before you ask, no, you can't talk to him. He's already down at the Police Department, preparing his testimony for court tomorrow.

"Oh…" Mr. Wright mumbled with a small frown. He then sighed and looked at me.

"Maybe someone in the park saw something?" he asked hopefully.

"Maybe," I agreed. With Hunter and his officers still on the scene, we wouldn't be able to investigate the crime scene, so we headed back out into the park.

Unfortunately, the most anyone we talked to saw was Apollo sprinting like a madman towards the Haunted House.

"Why was he in such a hurry? That's what I want to know," Mr. Wright mused. I shook my head.

"Your guess is as good as mine. He got a text, and suddenly bolted, telling me not to follow," I replied.

"Yet, you didn't listen, did you?" he asked with a smirk in my direction. I snorted.

"No. Why would I? Something was obviously wrong, and look, I was right," I retorted. Mr. Wright laughed, before standing from the bench we were sitting on.

"Come on, lets go see if we can talk to Apollo. Maybe he can tell us about that text.

…

Unfortunately, by the time we made it to the Detention Center, it was already nine o'clock at night.

Visiting hours end at eight. Mr. Wright sighed.

"Looks like we _are_ walking into tomorrow's trial at a disadvantage," he grumbled. I grinned.

"Wouldn't be the first time for you, huh Mr. Wright?" I asked brightly, causing him to laugh.

"Oh, whatever!"

…

A/N: This chapter… was shorter then I thought it would be.

Huh. Guess I could have made these two chapters one. OH WELL!

Ema's thoughts about Apollo and red had me snickering as I wrote them. And no, Apollo doesn't know about the "underlying connotations" of the color red... It's just his favorite color (I'd imagine!)

Trial starts tomorrow! I'm taking another break to play another section of Apollo Justice, then I'll write another chapter!


	6. Trial: Day 1

A/N: And here comes the first trial day!

This prosecutor is a little tricky for me to write, but I desperately wanted to give him a go, so… we'll see?

Also, if you say all three of my OC's names out loud (especially Ivana Sokurblad), you'll probably get a kick out of them.

I know I did!

Last thing: Sorry for how long this took. I've been working on this for a while; days, it seemed... For some reason, this chapter just _didn't_ want to be written.

HOWEVER, I WILL NOT BE STOPPED!

Okay, enough talk! Here we go!

…

Chapter Six – Trial: Day 1

 _Phoenix_

 **August 5**

I paced the floor of Defendant's Lobby 2, waiting for my client, and protégé, to walk in. Ema sat on the couch, dressed in her normal white jacket, going over her notes from our lack-luster investigation.

Just then, Apollo walked in. He looked a little worried, his spikes drooping forward and his arms crossed, but otherwise okay.

Ema was up and across the room before I could say a word.

"What were you thinking yesterday when you ran off like that!?" she demanded. Apollo's eyes widened, and he took a step back, his arms uncrossing.

"Uh…"

" _You_ could have been the one to be killed! And now you're on trial for murder!" she seethed. Apollo glanced over Ema's shoulder at me, his eyes pleading for help.

"Ema, I just—"

"I can't believe you'd run off like that on me!"

"Whoa, hey, wait!" Apollo finally found his voice, sounding more disbelieving then angry. "Do you think I killed that woman?" he demanded. Ema scowled, turning and stalking away.

"Would I be here helping Mr. Wright if I thought you did?" she shot back, crossing her arms. She then sighed, her shoulders slumping. "I'm just worried, Apollo. There's a lot of evidence, and—"

"Will the defense please enter the courtroom? Court is about to begin," the bailiff called.

 _Damn. I wanted to ask him what happened…_

"Well, come on, guys," I said with a smile, leading the way.

We entered the courtroom, Apollo settling in the defendant's chair, Ema and I behind the Defense bench. I looked across the room at the prosecutor, and felt a groan bubble up in my throat.

"Court is now in session for the murder of Ivana Sokurblad! Is the defense ready?"

"Yes, your honor," I said, planting a hand on my hip and holding my head high.

"Is the prosecution ready?"

"Hmph. Of course, Your Baldness," my opponent replied. I looked once more at the man across the room. He wore a completely black suit, coupled with a long, black trench coat with white trimming that matched his long hair. Completing the image was the falcon perched on his shoulder, and a feather in his mouth.

All he was missing were the deep bags under his gray eyes and the shackles.

"Prosecutor Blackquill, you're opening statement, please," the judge asked. Blackquill gave the judge a smile like honey, and I knew what was coming.

"Why, your honor, I thought since you so enjoyed giving the opening statement, that you might like to do that this time as well," he said smoothly. The judge gasped like an excitable school girl, shuffled the papers, and cleared his throat.

 _You know, I'd say it's a little too easy to manipulate his honor, but if I even tried that, I'd probably be held in contempt of court…_

"On August 1st, around a quarter after three, the body of Ms. Ivana Sokurblad was found in the Haunted House of Gatewater Land, in the Mirror Hall, stabbed in the back. Soon after, Mr. Apollo Justice was found in a storage room within the Haunted House, covered in the victim's blood, leading to his arrest!" He took a deep breath, his eyes even brighter, and looked at Blackquill. "How'd I do?"

"Perfect, Your Baldness. The prosecution would like to call it's first witness. Detective!" he snapped. I sighed, clearly seeing that Simon already had full control over the flow of the trial.

Next to me, Ema shivered.

"He's spooky…" she mumbled. I nodded in agreement.

"Believe me, Ema, it's only just begun…" I mumbled.

"Name and Occupation."

"Klu Hunter, Homicide Detective, Criminal Affairs!" he said brightly, saluting. Distantly, in the gallery, I swear I heard Athena's Widget chirp _"Dork!"_.

Blackquill put a hand over his mouth, but the amusement in his eyes was all too clear.

"You will testify about the details of the crime in further detail, Detective Greenhorn. Wright-dono, the witness is yours to question as you please," he said.

"I feel like no one's paying attention to me anymore…" the judge mumbled, sounding depressed.

 _You let him take control…_ I thought with little pity, before focusing on Hunter, who began his testimony.

"As the Judge said, the crime happened just after three in the afternoon, in the Haunted House," Hunter began. I frowned slightly.

" _Hold it!_ This was in the middle of the day, Detective. Why wasn't there someone else in the house to hear the attack and help the victim?" I asked.

"The Haunted House was closed for cleaning yesterday, Mr. Wright. Employees only," the detective explained.

"But my client isn't an employee of the park. How was he able to enter?"

"Um… I guess he snuck in?" Hunter said with a weak shrug.

"This rambling line of questions has nothing to do with the more immediate topic on hand," Blackquill suddenly said. "Continue with your testimony, Detective Greenhorn."

"Yes sir!" Hunter saluted again.

" _Major Dork!_ " came Widget's voice again, and this time both me and Simon had to cover our laughter, especially when coupled with Hunter's slightly, yet quickly covered, indignant look and Apollo's face palm.

Hunter continued none-the-less. "The victim and General Manager of the Haunted House, Ms. Ivana Sokurblad, was stabbed in the back with a thirteen inch Hunting Knife, puncturing her right lung."

I quickly scanned through the Autopsy Report once more. ' _Stabbed in back around 3pm, August 4. Right lung punctured. Died when lung collapsed.'_

" _Hold it!"_ I called. "You seem pretty sure about that murder weapon, Detective, yet the Autopsy report says nothing of it. Was it found?" I asked.

"Oh yeah!" Hunter said brightly, before pulling out a large baggy. Inside was exactly what he described; a thirteen inch long Hunting Knife. It was fully back, even the blade, with a wickedly sharp point, and one side razor sharp. The other side of the blade was serrated, the points facing back towards the handle.

The entire thing, even the handle, was coated in blood.

"Was it tested for fingerprints, Detective Green Dork?" Blackquill demanded, slamming his hand down on the bench in front of him. I coughed to hide my amusement at the nickname switch, knowing Athena definitely had something to do with it. Hunter frowned slightly, but continued.

"Of course, Prosecutor Blackquill. However, there were none."

"And I'd be right in assuming the blood belongs to the victim?" Ema asked from next to me, adjusting her pick glasses over her eyes.

"Of course it is, Dr. Skye," Hunter said. I nodded, making a note of the blade, before rolling my hand towards him.

"Please continue."

"The victim didn't go down without a fight though! She had a bat with her, and she slammed it into the back of the head of her attacker!"

" _Hold it!_ Where is this bat you're speaking of?" I demanded. Hunter grinned, pulling the bat out.

"Right here, Mr. Attorney!" he said brightly. "The handle is covered in the victim's fingerprints!"

"And those bark colored strands clinging to the top?" Simon asked. I looked closer, noticing the few strands of hair that seemed to be trapped in cracks at the top of the bat.

"Ah! Those! It's hair, belonging to the defendant, Mr. Justice!" Hunter said with a big, bright grin. A soft groan escaped me.

"He's a lot better then Gumshoe..." I mumbled to Ema, who nodded.

"I know. He's still a dork though."

"Well, might as well take note of the bat too," I sighed, turning to the Court Record. I then nodded to Hunter.

"Mr. Justice ran away then, but didn't make it far due to his head injury, and hid in a side room where he passed out."

" _Hold it!_ How was—"

" _SILENCE!_ " Blackquill suddenly snapped, and I jumped slightly. "Do you plan to press every word that Detective Green Dork speaks, Wright-dono?" he demanded.

"I'm just trying to gather more information, Prosecutor Blackquill," I replied.

"And Justice-dono was found, unconscious, in a side room, in the Haunted House, with head trauma, but little bleeding." His tone was that of reading from a grocery list. "What more information could you possibly ascertain about this statement?"

"Um…" was my intelligible reply.

"Well, Mr. Wright?" the Judge asked.

"N-nothing… never mind…" I mumbled.

 _Last time I think one of your nicknames are funny, Blackquill!_ I thought, a little childishly, I'll admit.

Hunter decided to continue.

"As a final act of defiance, Ms. Sokurblad did two things to point us to her attacker! She grabbed Mr. Justice's bracelet during the fight, and wrote his name in her own blood!" he said, his eyes bright with excitement and adrenaline, probably at just the thought of the struggle.

" _OBJECTION!"_ I yelled, pointing at the witness. He turned a bewildered look to me, and I fished out the picture of the word written by the victim. "Ms. Sokurblad did not write the defendant's name!" I slammed the picture down. "She wrote the word 'red'!"

"Red? What does that mean?" the Judge asked in confusion.

"Obviously, it was the color of Justice-dono's garb," Blackquill said, like he was talking to a young child.

"That leads to another question, though," I said, regaining everyone's attention. "If she didn't even know Mr. Justice's name, why would he have reason to attack her?"

"Why… Mr. Wright! You're right!" the Judge gasped, and I smirked, crossing my arms.

" _SILENCE!"_ Blackquill snapped, emphasizing the point by slamming his desk again with his hand. "It matters not the motive or connection as of yet, but the facts of the case. And while this witness has exhausted his usefulness, I have yet another who will shed more light on this murder."

"Another one?" the Judge gasped.

"Of course," the Twisted Samurai smirked. "An eyewitness!"

 _WHAT!?_ My eyes widened at that, and I gripped the edge of the bench tighter. _There was an eyewitness!?_

At these words, Detective Klu Hunter stepped down from the witness stand, and a young, creepy man, dressed entirely in black, stepped up.

"Name and occupation," Blackquill demanded.

The young man looked at him.

"Robin Graves," he said, pushing his glasses up his nose. I noticed that he also held a clipboard. "Personal Assistant of Ms. Ivana Sokurblad."

"Please, Mr. Graves, testify about what you witnessed!" the judge said.

"I was put in charge of cleaning the mirrors in Mirror Hall. I didn't get there until after lunch," Graves began.

" _Hold it_! Was this around the time of the murder?" I asked.

"Of course."

"And your lunch ended around three? Doesn't that seem a little late?" I asked.

"The Park's lunch breaks are staggered, so that not everyone goes out at the same time. Everyone in the Haunted House got the last lunch," he explained.

 _Then… what was Ms. Sokurblad doing there?_

"As I walked in, I saw the defendant lowering Ms. Sokurblad down," Mr. Graves continued.

" _Hold it!_ " My eyes were narrowed. "Were they facing each other?" I asked.

"Who?"

"The defendant and the victim! When Apollo was lowering Ms. Sokurblad to the ground, were the two face to face?" I demanded, slamming my hands onto the desk in front of me. Graves looked thoughtful for a moment.

"Actually… yes," he said.

"This has nothing to do with the case," Blackquill suddenly said. "Continue."

"The defendant then turned and ran. I think I heard this loud crack, and he stumbled, but he didn't stop," Graves said before my suspicion could fully formulate in my mind about the last statement.

This one, however, worked perfectly.

" _OBJECTION!_ " I yelled, pointed at the witness. He jumped slightly.

"Y-yes, Mr Wright?"

"You said that you witnessed Mr. Justice lowering the victim to the ground, _then_ you heard an odd noise, like a crack?" I asked.

"Well, yes…"

"What does this have to do with anything, Wright-dono?" Blackquill demanded. I pulled out a piece of paper, tapping the back of my hand against it as I studied it.

"It is the prosecution's argument that the victim struck my client in the head _before_ she was stabbed," I reminded the court, putting the paper back in front of me and slamming my hands down. "However! If the order of events happened as this witness states…" I trailed off, and horrified realization flashed across Blackquill's face.

"No!" he growled.

"What? What!? Don't keep me in suspense!" the Judge whined.

"Then the order of events would be reversed," I replied with a smirk, planting my hands on my hips.

"Score!" Ema cheered softly next to me as the crowed erupted.

"Order! Order!" the Juge yelled, slamming his gavel. I was talking again before he even finished.

"There is one more thing!" I pulled the autopsy report out. "If the victim and the defendant were facing each other, then there is now way Mr. Justice could have stabbed her in the back!"

" _SILENCE!_ " Blackquill snapped, slamming his hand against the surface in front of him. "What proof is there, Wright-dono? Could he not simply walk up close to the victim?" he demanded.

"Think about it, Prosecutor Blackquill," I said, pulling out the picture of the victim's dying message. "The victim left us a clue. She didn't know the name of her attacker, just that he favored the color red. If that's all you know of someone, Prosecutor Blackquill, who wasn't supposed to be in the closed Haunted House, by the way, would you allow them close enough to hug you? Because that's the distance and pose this type of attack would require." Blackquill gasped, at that, flinching back slightly. I continued on my lead. "Not only that, but I didn't think it was possible to hit someone in the _back of the head_ with a baseball bat… when facing them head on!"

The courtroom erupted once more, and it took several minutes for the Judge to regain order. He then turned to me.

"Mr. Wright, what does this all mean!?" he demanded. I smirked, planting my hands on my hips once more.

"I'm glad you asked, your honor. I have just bought up the possibility that most of the prosecution's claims were false; first with the order of the events between my client's head injury, and the actual murder. Second, if it was possible for the two to injure each other from behind while facing each other. Not to mention the hole poked in Mr. Blackquill's argument by the lack of motive!" I took a deep breath, calming my excited nerves and preparing myself for this crucial moment. I snapped open my eyes and slammed my hands down on the desk in front of me.

"It is the defense's belief that there was a third person at the scene of the crime! The true culprit! One with means and motive to kill Ms. Ivana Sokurblad, then pin it on my client by making sure he didn't leave the Haunted House!"

"Mr. Wright! Surely you're not accusing the witness!" the Judge gasped.

 _Why are you so surprised? That's a totally normal tactic for me to take,_ I thought in confusion before looking at Mr. Robin Graves. _However…_

"Not at this time, your Honor. There is still too much doubt, and too much investigation needing to be done to come to that conclusion," I replied. The Judge closed his eyes in thought for a moment, before nodding.

"You are right, Mr. Wright. Court is now adjourned until tomorrow morning. Until then, the Prosecution and Defense will investigate and attempt to find evidence to clear up these doubts. That is all!" he slammed his gavel down.

…

I gave vent to a sigh of relief as Ema and I entered the Defendant's Lobby, Apollo close behind. He gave me a tight smile.

"Thanks, Mr. Wright," he said. I chuckled.

"Only repaying you back. You got me an innocent verdict once too, remember?" I pointed out. Apollo laughed.

"I think you paid me back when you gave me this job when no one else would hire me!" he shot back, causing Ema to laugh too. I grinned, remembering a constant gripe of his.

"Even if most of the work is Pro Bono?"

His face fell, but he didn't get a chance to answer before Athena, followed by Trucy, and Apollo's parents, Zeus and Thalassa, rushed in, all talking at once and surrounding Apollo. Ema sighed next to me, and I looked over to see her watching them happily.

"What?" I asked. She jumped slightly and looked at me, before giving an embarrassed laugh.

"Nothing. I just love seeing him happy," she admitted, with the slightest trace of a blush.

…

A/N: FINALLY! I cut out Morty Ishan's testimony for fear of slowing the chapter down even more.

Hopefully the next five chapters won't go like this…

Alas, Poor Detective Green Do- I mean Klu Hunter!

I've always imagined Widget's voice being super chipper, by the way...


	7. Investigation: Day 2

A/N: Here comes another chapter!

…

Chapter Seven – Investigation: Day 2

 _Ema_

 **August 5**

There was no easy way to go about proving Mr. Wright's assertion that there was a third person at the scene of the crime. As the initial investigator, I could scientifically prove, with the evidence we currently had, that there was no such person.

Accept… that Mr. Wright was right when he said that Apollo and the victim couldn't sustain their injuries when facing each other…

I knew I was missing something, which really bothered me.

Mr. Wright and I followed the officers who drove Apollo back to the Detention Center, and waited for him in the Visitor's Room.

"Finally, we can actually talk," Mr. Wright chuckled as Apollo sat. The sad smile on Apollo's face tore at my heart.

Ever since I met him, I'd always thought he was a little cute. He didn't flirt with every girl he met (unlike a certain Glimmerous Fop), and he actually _appreciated_ how science could help in an investigation.

Apollo was even the one who talked me into retaking the test to become a Forensic Scientist, helped me study, and was the first to congratulate me.

I think it was around there that my feelings for Apollo really blossomed.

To see him so sad now…

"So, Apollo, why don't you tell me what happened," Phoenix asked. Apollo sighed.

"I was on a um… a date with Ema," he started, his eyes flickering to me and his cheeks growing red. I hid my grin. "And… while we were eating, I got a text."

"Ema mentioned something about that," Phoenix said. "Can we see it?"

"I wish. Hunter confiscated my phone. I'm just surprised the text didn't come up in court. I mean… I was kind of blackmailed into going to the Haunted House in the first place," Apollo said thoughtfully.

"WHAT!?" Phoenix gasped. I leaned forward, however.

"Apollo, do you have a password on your phone?" I asked. Apollo's eyes widened in realization, before gave a sheepish smile.

"Actually, yeah. Heh."

"And that would be why it didn't come up. They haven't figured it out," I explained, and the two of them nodded. Apollo then looked back at his boss.

"Mr. Wright, you were right, there was a third person. Sokurblad was facing me when she was stabbed from behind. I tried to run, but the masked man hit me too. I…" Apollo hesitated, taking a deep breath. "I thought he was going to kill me too," he admitted. I winced at that, understanding how such a feeling could come about in that kind of situation.

"Apollo, I need to—"

"This meeting is over," an officer said.

"What?" Mr. Wright asked in surprise, looking up.

"What do you mean this meeting is over!?" I demanded.

"We need to question Mr. Justice more," the officer said. Apollo quickly looked at Mr. Wright.

"EF-11." He then stood, allowing himself to be lead away.

"Huh?" I asked, before noticing the grin on Mr. Wright's face. "What does EF-11 have to do with anything?" I asked as we left.

"EF-11 is the police code for the case that reunited Apollo with his father," he explained. "Do you remember the date?"

"Well, the verdict was given on November fourth," I said thoughtfully.

"That's not the date he would have picked," Mr. Wright said. "He'd have said 'my birthday', instead of the case."

"Talk about a great birthday present," I said with a warm smile, before thinking. "Well, he probably picked the day he first met Zeus then…"

"Which would be the first day of investigation," Mr. Wright added.

"So, November first. But still, what does this have to do with anything?" I asked. Mr. Wright looked at me with a chuckle.

"Ema, scientifically speaking," my attention was peaked. "Don't people normally choose an important date as their password?" he asked. I had to think about that for a moment before realizing what he was driving at.

"Oh!"

"Exactly."

We had been walking while we talked, and before I realized it, we were at my car.

"Alright, where are we going?"

"The police station."

…

The Police Station was a busy place, but Mr. Wright walked confidently through, heading straight for the Chief Homicide Investigator's office; Detective Dick Gumshoe. He knocked on the door.

"Come in!"

We walked in to find Gumshoe slurping noodles from one of those Instant Cup-O-Soups.

"Still on the Instant Noodle diet?" Mr. Wright asked, gaining the attention of the detective.

"Hey, pal! Sorry to hear about your subordinate," he said, putting the soup aside.

"I'm actually here about Apollo," Mr. Wright said. I looked around the office. It was small and cramped, with little actual walking space. Just like the last time I was in here.

"What can I do for you, pal?" Gumshoe asked as I came to stand behind Mr. Wright.

"We need Apollo's phone. I think their might be crucial evidence on it," the attorney said, his voice the perfect mixture of insistent and pleading.

 _He's gotten good at this…_ I thought, noticing that Gumshoe was instantly swayed.

"Are you sure?" the Chief Detective asked, standing and coming around the desk. At both of our nods, he sighed, leading the way out into the squad room.

Detectives were all over the place, filing paperwork and examining evidence. Gumshoe walked right over to an empty desk, opening one of the drawers.

"This is Detective Hunter's desk," he said, pulling a red phone out and handing it to me. "He confiscated the phone, but once none of us could figure out the password, he gave up. Doubt you— Hey! How'd you do that, pal!?" Gumshoe demanded as I held up the unlocked phone with a grin.

"He told us the password," Mr. Wright said. I huffed.

"Never let me have my moment," I grumbled, looking back at the phone. His wallpaper was a picture of him and his dad together, and I had to shake my head at the similarities between the two. I navigated to his messenger app.

"Maybe I should look…" Mr. Wright mumbled, but I ignored him. The text that Apollo was talking about was the last one he got.

I opened it, and gasped, holding it up to show Mr. Wright and Detective Gumshoe so that they could read the text.

"' _Come to the mirror hall of the Haunted House in 2 minutes, or someone dies. Do NOT tell your girlfriend, or someone dies_ '," Gumshoe read, before gasping as well.

"It's no wonder he left so fast without telling you," Mr. Wright said. I nodded, looking at the phone again.

"The sender is anonymous…" I muttered, inspecting it. I pulled my pink glasses over my eyes, tinting everything different shades of pink and red. Unless I was using a chemical that would show a reaction, these glasses didn't do much at all. They helped me to focus and block out distractions, though. "I doubt it's someone that Apollo knows, so how did they get his number? And how did they know he was on a date?" I questioned.

"That's the million dollar question," Mr. Wright said. I looked up at him, shifting my glasses to the top of my head.

"Yeah. Detective, do you mind if we take this?" I asked, holding up the phone. Gumshoe chuckled.

"Sure, pal. I'll let Hunter know when he comes back," he said. Mr. Wright smiled, taking the phone.

"Thanks, Gumshoe," he said, leading me out.

"Now where?" I asked.

"The crime scene. Where else?"

…

We didn't even fully make it into the Haunted House when we ran into today's star witness, Robin Graves. Mr. Wright's eyes lit up.

"Mr. Graves, may we talk to you?" Mr. Wright asked. Graves jumped and looked up from his clipboard.

"Mr. Wright? Sure, what is it?" he asked.

"It's about Ms. Sokurblad."

"Look, I already said everything I saw in court," he said, not seeming defensive, just confused. Mr. Wright shook his head.

"It's not about that. It's about _before_ she was murdered," Mr. Wright said, and I suddenly realized what he was driving at.

Robin Graves winced, seeming to realize as well.

"Did something happen?" I asked.

"Well… Ms. Sokurblad had been acting… strangely, recently," he admitted.

"When did this start?" Phoenix asked. Graves seemed to think for a moment before nodding to himself in determination, coming to a decision.

"A week ago, Ms. Sokurblad received a letter, with no return address," he admitted. "Since then she's been a lot more jumpy, constantly looking over he shoulder, and barely leaving the Haunted House."

 _Head of the Haunted House, jumpy? That's strange…_

"Did you ever see this letter?" Mr. Wright asked. Graves nodded once more.

"Yes. Today. After the trial, I realized that… maybe the letter had something to do with it, especially if there _was_ a third person there. So… I went back to her office… and found it." He pulled a black envelope from his pocket, hesitating once more, before handing it over.

"I haven't read it."

I took the envelope and carefully opened it. The seal was already broken, so I didn't have to worry about that. I felt Mr. Wright look over my shoulder at the typed letter.

' _Ivana,_

 _I am tired of this game we've been playing. I have information. Documents. And if you would like to keep it private, you will meet me in the Mirror Hall of the Haunted House at 3 on August 4_ _th_ _._

 _It is time to end this.'_

I looked up at Mr. Wright, both of us coming to the same conclusion at the same time.

"Blackmail."

…

A/N: Thus, the plot deepens!

This chapter was a lot easier to write, hehe.

Also, yet another oneshot was inspired by this chapter... hehe


	8. Trial: Day 2

A/N: Here's the next chapter! Another trial day. Hopefully this one goes a lot faster then the last trial day…

…

Chapter Eight – Trial: Day 2

 _Phoenix_

 **August 6**

"Court is now will now reconvene for the trial of Apollo Justice. Is the defense ready?" the Judge said. Last night, by the time we _finally_ found Ms. Sokurblad's apartment, it was already close to eleven at night, meaning we didn't have time to investigate it if we wanted to be awake for court the next morning.

So, again, I stood in court, totally unprepared.

"Of course, your honor," I responded.

"Is the prosecution ready?"

"Always, Your Baldness."

"Yesterday, the defense had provided the possibility that there could have been a third person in the hallway. Has either side found evidence to prove or disprove this theory?" the Judge asked. Thinking about the blackmail letter in my bag, I opened my mouth.

"No, Your Baldness. The prosecution has, however, decided to bring a witness to the stand," Blackquill said before I could say a word.

"Then by all means, Prosecutor Blackquill, call them up," the Judge agreed.

" _OBJECTION!"_ I yelled, pointing at the Judge. He jumped at my shout. "The defense _does_ have evidence!"

"If you have evidence, then perhaps you can use it to prove your point during this testimony," Prosecutor Blackquill suggested, before turning to the judge. "I call the defendant, Justice-dono, to the stand!"

As he spoke, Blackquill's hawk, Taka, fluttered up from his shoulder and landed on top of the Judge's head, making it difficult for him to refuse.

"He has control again, doesn't he?" Ema asked. I sighed softly.

"Yeah…"

Apollo stepped up to the stand, looking just as surprised as I felt. I nodded slightly to him though.

No matter what, I will make sure he'll be okay.

"Name and occupation," Blackquill demanded.

"I'm Apollo Justice, Defense Attorney at Law." Apollo seemed calm on the surface, but he was watching the prosecutor wearily. I understood. After all, Simon Blackquill was the scariest Prosecutor he ever faced.

He didn't have the pleasure of meeting Manfred von Karma.

"Please tell us what happened that night, Mr. Justice," the Judge asked. He nodded.

"I was…" he hesitated and blushed slightly before starting again. "I was on a date at Gatewater Land the day of the murder. While we were eating, I got a text."

" _Hold it!"_ Blackquill yelled, surprising both me and the Judge. "What text do you speak of? The police investigated your phone with nil results."

"Mr. Blackquill! This is the defense's cross-examination!" the Judge said. I planted my hands on my hips with a smirk.

"The defense has no objections to his question, your honor. However, we did investigate Mr. Justice's phone, with Chief Detective Gumshoe's permission, and found the text my client is talking about," I revealed, pulling the phone out.

"Detective Hunter didn't find anything due to the password on Mr. Justice's phone," Ema explained. Prosecutor Blackquill was practically seething at this piece of news, and I knew Hunter was going to catch hell for that mistake.

I pulled the text up, cleared my throat slightly, and read the text out loud. The Judge gasped, and Blackquill growled slightly. I smirked, knowing he realized the hole this blew in his case. I then looked at Apollo and nodded.

"Please continue."

"Because I didn't want anyone to _die_ , I ran to the Haunted House and found Mirror Hall," he said.

" _Hold it!_ How were you able to get in?" I asked. Apollo looked confused for a moment before shaking his head.

"I actually… don't know. It's a blur. After all, I was panicking. I only had two minutes to get there from the Wild West section. Then I had to _find_ the Mirror Hall, so most of that run is actually a blur," he admitted. I nodded, understanding that.

Blackquill scoffed. "Convenient."

Apollo scowled at him before continuing.

"There, I saw the victim. She was angry, and she accused me of sending her… a letter or something? Then she was stabbed in the back, and stumbled towards me. I saw the blade come through the left side of her chest."

" _Hold it!_ " I said, slamming my hands on the desk. "A few things, Apollo. did you just say a letter?" I demanded, heart hammering. He looked shocked, but nodded.

"Well, yeah."

I smirked.

"Your honor. The defense would now like to present the evidence we found yesterday, pointing towards a third person being in that hallway," I said.

"Mr. Wright! Why didn't you present this sooner, when asked?" he demanded.

"If you remember correctly, Prosecutor Blackquill told me to use it during this testimony," I reminded him.

"Ah."

I pulled the letter out, holding it up.

"This is a blackmail letter, addressed to the victim."

"Blackmail!?" the Judge gasped. "Well, read it out loud, Mr. Wright!"

"Yes, your honor. ' _Ivana, I am tired of this game we've been playing. I have information. Documents. And if you would like to keep it private, you will meet me in the Mirror Hall of the Haunted House at 3 on August 4_ _th_ _. It is time to end this.'_ There is no signature."

"And if you're paying attention, that's the same date and time as the murder," Ema added brightly from next to me.

"Where did you obtain this?" Blackquill demanded.

"Mr. Robin Graves gave it to us, while also admitting that the victim has been acting strangely since she received this," I told them. "This proves that there was a third person in that hallway. After all, both the defendant and the victim were blackmailed into going there! Finally, my client said he saw the victim get stabbed in the _left_ side of her body, when everything else says right. If he's telling the truth, this means that he must have been _facing_ the victim, and got confused with his _own_ left!"

The gallery began muttering amongst each other, falling quiet only after the Judge slammed his gavel a few times.

"Mr. Wright, do you—"

" _WAIT!_ " A voice yelled from the gallery. We all looked up to see a man, with neat, blond hair and an unremarkable face stand, rushing down the aisle between seats towards the front of the courtroom. A bailiff moved between him and the low partition.

"ORDER!" the Judge yelled. The man continued to yell anyways.

"That's a lie! I'm Ivana's boyfriend, and she was just fine!"

"The victim's boyfriend?" the Judge gasped in surprise. I was watching the man though. He seemed distraught, but otherwise okay… until he looked at Apollo. His eyes became cold, filled with rage - no, hatred, and his jaw tensed. A scar on his cheek that was so light that I hadn't noticed before suddenly became prominent.

He became a totally different person. I was happy the bailiff was already holding him back.

I was actually scared that he'd hurt Apollo.

Sokurblad's boyfriend, Mr. Jacky Hyde, caused such a ruckus that the Judge had to postpone court for the day.

…

A/N Yay! Only a day working on this!

What do you all think about Jacky Hyde?


	9. Investigation: Day 3

A/N: Investigation days, wee!

…

Chapter Nine – Investigation: Day 3

 _Ema_

 **August 6**

I padded after Phoenix, thinking about that man who interrupted the trial today.

While it was somewhat a blessing, allowing us more time to investigate, I couldn't help but remember that look on Mr. Hyde's face.

It was terrifying. Especially when that scar showed up.

 _I know we should probably talk to him, but I really don't want to until trial tomo—_

"Ema," Mr. Wright said, reclaiming my attention as we walked down the steps to the district court. Looking up, I found out why.

 _Speak of the devil, and he appears on your doorstep…_

At the bottom of the stairs, starring at us, was Mr. Jacky Hyde. His face was calm, and his blond hair, which had grown ragged in his anger, was neat again. I searched his left cheek for the scar.

It was so faint, nearly invisible.

"Mr. Hyde," Mr. Wright said as we reached the man. "I'm sorry for your loss," he said sincerely. Hyde sighed, looking down in sadness.

"Oh, Ivana…"

"May I ask how you two met?" I asked. He looked up at me.

"We both work at Gatewater Land. I'm the man in the mask. The actor of the hero."

"Huh?" Mr. Wright mumbled. Hyde sighed, and I was beginning to get spooked.

This was an entirely different man then the one in the courtroom fifteen minutes ago.

"I play the Blue Badger."

"Oh!"

"We met while we were on break." He sighed. "It was love at first sight… and now she's gone…" with that, he wandered off before we could even ask anymore questions.

"Strange," I mumbled, leading Mr. Wright to where my car was parked.

We decided to first go investigate Ms. Sokurblad's house, since we didn't have time to last night. It was a small, one bedroom flat. The door was, of course, locked, but I pulled a bobby-pin from my hair and got to work.

"Um… what are you doing?" Mr. Wright asked.

"Picking the lock."

"And you know how to… why?"

"I did an experiment for science fair in high school – more of a myth buster kind of thing – to see if you could pick locks the way they do in the movies. Bobby-pins, cards, so on. Turns out, a simple lock, you can use a bobby-pin," she explained. I heard Mr. Wright sigh from behind me and looked up. "What?"

"Well, if Apollo really did want to commit a crime that included getting into a locked place, he'd have three different possibilities for accomplices," he said, shaking his head. I grinned.

"Mr. Justice, your daughter, and… me?" I asked, standing and opening the door.

Mr. Wright laughed. "Exactly."

Sokurblad's home was very normal. Nothing out of the ordinary. Using my pink-tinged glasses, I searched high and low in the living room, leaving the bookshelf in the corner for last. After all, scientifically speaking, people tended to hide things in their bookshelves.

I was studying the books finally ( _Vampire lover much, Ms. Sokurblad?_ ) when Mr. Wright came out from her bedroom.

"Ema…" he said slowly, thoughtfully.

"Hm?"

"How much do you think they make at Gatewater Land? As the head of a department?"

"Oh, probably not much, going by this apartment. It's very basic living, and I read on the way in that this building was for low income residents," I explained, subtly taking note of one more the more interesting titles on Sokurblad's shelf; one of the few non-vampire novels.

"Then how do you explain this?" Mr. Wright asked, and his hand was suddenly in front of my face.

Pinched delicately between his gloved thumb and forefinger, was a beautiful, gold ring, interlaced with many, many diamonds, and set with a large one at the top. I gasped softly. "Maybe it's fake?" I suggested, putting my notebook away and pulling my own gloves on, taking it to examine it.

"Maybe. What do you think?" he asked. I held up a hand, and he fell silent.

With my glasses, I could see the beautiful craftsmanship of the ring, and see through the glitz and glam.

 _Maybe that's why I can see right through that Glimmerous Fop_ , I thought idly, turning the ring over in my fingers.

"Diamond, compared to cubic zirconia or any other synthetic diamond, looses it's sparkle when looked at through these glasses. I pulled out a spare pair and handed them to Mr. Wright so he could see what I was talking about. "And these stones definitely look dull to me now. Plus the band isn't a perfect circle – it's shaped to a specific finger," I explained.

"Wow, yeah. But that just means the ring was worn a lot, right?" he asked. I shook my head.

"Perhaps, but it could also mean the band is almost pure gold. Gold is the softest metal in the world, and can be shaped easily. I wonder…" Carefully, I pressed the edge of my thumbnail against the inside of the band, where there were no diamonds. When I pulled my finger back, a small, crescent cut was present. Mr. Wright let out a low whistle.

"That must have cost a fortune," he mumbled. I nodded in agreement.

"A fortune she's not making at Gatewater Land," I pointed out. He nodded, handing me back my glasses.

"Think this has to do with that blackmail?" he asked. I grinned.

"Probably. Did you find anything else?" I asked, and he nodded.

"Diamond earrings, a necklace, that kind of stuff. I took a picture. Let's get out of here before we're caught."

"Okay!"

…

From Ms. Sokurblad's apartment, we returned to Gatewater Land. There was still a lot to investigate here.

However, we only made it to the front of the Haunted House when we ran into a familiar, albeit very distressed, face.

"Detective Hunter?" Mr. Wright called, causing the pacing man to stop and look up.

"Hm? Oh, Mr. Wright, Dr. Skye…" he said, looking between the two of us.

"What's wrong?" Mr. Wright asked, though I already knew the answer.

"It's just… this case, you know?" He gave a long sigh.

"Get in trouble with Prosecutor Blackquill?" I asked, and he shrugged.

"He yelled and sic'd that bird of his on me, but no hard done. No I… I think I arrested the wrong person… again!" he was so heartbroken that I couldn't help but reach forward and pat his shoulder.

That's right. He'd only been a detective for about a month. In fact, he was promoted just before the murder in Vitamin Square and led that case, resulting in _two_ people being wrongly accused of the murder.

"Detective, you arrested a man based on the evidence you had and the suspicious position you found him in," Mr. Wright suddenly said. "And while I'm not happy that it's one of _my_ employees, you did your job, and you did it well. Even now, you're searching for evidence."

"But I became a detective in order to discover the truth and put criminals behind bars! Not to falsely accuse people and push it off on the courts!" he explained. I smiled slightly.

"But Klu," I said, using his first name to cut through his guilt. It worked. He turned his attention to me. "You _are_ helping discover the truth. You're still searching for evidence, even though there's only one more day of court. And if you now believe Apollo to be innocent, then search _harder_. That's what I did while I was a detective. But know, you're going to make mistakes. Just feel lucky that Los Angeles has such a skilled Law Firm willing to take on even the most ridiculous of cases."

"Um, I'm standing right here," Mr. Wright mumbled, but I ignored him. Hunter thought about what I said, and smiled warmly.

"You're right. Thanks, Dr. Skye. I'll try harder!"

"That's the spirit!" I said with a grin.

"I'll go now!" And with that, Detective Klu Hunter had disappeared into the Haunted House. I sighed.

 _Alright. I guess he's not THAT annoying. He's still a dork though._

Mr. Wright followed after the detective, disappearing into the Haunted House as well. I moved to follow, when suddenly, I felt a pair of eyes on me.

Freezing for a second, I slowly turned. Near the fountain, a couple hundred feet away, stood one of the park's mascots.

The Bad Badger.

And he was staring at me.

 _Wait. This isn't right. The Bad Badger only comes out at sho—_ "WAIT!" I yelled, cutting off my own thought, as the Badger took off, tearing through the park.

I gave chase.

People yelled after me, angry that I was shoving them aside, until I finally had the thought to pull out my badge.

"POLICE! FREEZE, BAD BADGER!" I yelled.

This was stupid, I knew.

After all, I was no longer a detective. I still had my training.

But I had no gun.

Suddenly, and to my surprise, everyone did move out of my way. But they were _clapping_ and _cheering_.

 _They think this is a publicity stunt!_ I thought in surprise.

The Bad Badger ducked into the building I recognized as the Wild West attraction. He shot through a side door, and I followed.

The door slammed behind me, and I spun on my heel, knowing I just walked into a trap.

The mascot raised his gun, pointing it at me.

All of my training and instincts kicked into high gear.

The mitten like gloves of the suit made pulling the trigger awkward.

He was holding the gun wrong. He never shot one before.

The gun wasn't even fully lifted before I sprang into action. I lunged forward, sidestepping to the side of the gun and to the outside of the body, grabbing his wrist and twisting. I heard a grunt, and the Badger went down on one knee. I twisted his arm until it was fully behind his back.

But still, he wouldn't let that damn gun go. I reached for it, pulling it out of his hand, and found that it was attached to the suit.

It was the fake gun after all.

Suddenly, the Bad Badger surged upwards, slamming be back into the wall. Luckily, I didn't smack my head, but I was still winded enough to let the Badger go. He tore away from me and through another door while I was still catching my breath.

I heard the sound of the lock, and looking at the door, I knew this would be one lock I couldn't pick. It was just too complicated.

With my breath caught, but my pride hurt, I left the building and sat on the bench in front of the attraction. Adrenaline was still pumping through me, and I was trying to calm my racing heart down.

My phone rang.

"Hello?" I answered.

" _Ema!? Where the hell did you go?"_ the voice on the other end of the line, Mr. Wright, demanded.

"I… chased after the Bad Badger," I admitted, knowing how stupid that probably sounded.

" _The Bad Badger? What?"_

"He's part of the mascot family. Usually only shows up for shows. He was watching us talk to Hunter, and… Mr. Wright, he was very suspicious. When I cornered him, he threatened me with his fake gun, acting like it was real," I explained, watching as the Blue Badger walked by. He waved at me, and I smiled in return.

" _Wow, are you okay? Where are you?_ " he demanded.

"I'm fine. I've had police training, remember? I'm in front of the Wild West attraction."

" _Alright. I'll be there soon. If that's where this… um… Bad Badger went… there's probably something there,"_ he said, before hanging up.

Mr. Wright was there after a few more minutes, found me, and sat next to me while I explained in greater detail what happened. He nodded before pulling out an evidence bag.

"I found these in the trash outside of the Haunted House," he admitted. I took the bag and looked inside.

"Latex gloves?"

"Yep. And there's blood on them," he replied. I nodded.

"Perfect. Mind if I take them home? I can further test them in my home lab," I explained.

"You have a… why am I not surprised?" He shook his head at my grin. "Sure. Knock yourself out."

"Thanks," I said with a grin, putting the bag in my pocket. "So, now what?"

"I'm actually interested in seeing if we can get into that room your suspicious badger ran into," he said. I nodded, standing.

"Alright, right this way."

...

The door was unlocked.

"Huh? I know he locked it…" I mumbled.

"Maybe he slipped out?" Mr. Wright suggested.

I nodded absently. "Maybe… Didn't see him though..."

Inside was a locker room, with exactly four lockers. Each locker had a name on it.

"' _Blue Badger', 'Pink Badger', 'Proto Badger',_ and…" Mr. Wright read before looking at the last one.

"' _Bad Badger',"_ I finished. "This is where the suits are held when not in use."

We opened each locker to find only one containing a suit.

The Bad Badger suit. In the _Blue Badger's_ locker. That's when I remembered the Blue Badger I'd seen earlier.

"He must have changed and snuck out!" I exclaimed, before scowling. Mr. Wright put a hand on my shoulder.

"It's okay. We'll figure this out," he said, before going over and inspecting the suit. I followed after, not expecting to find anything.

Boy was I wrong.

A paper fluttered out of the suit as Mr. Wright moved it, and I knelt down to pick it up.

"' _Gatewater Land Accounting_ '," I read, before studying the paper. I let out a whistle, things clicking into place.

"Mr. Wright," I said slowly.

"Hm?"

"I think Ms. Sokurblad's blackmailer is the Bad Badger. This is documentation about money going missing from the park's account. A _lot_ of money. Which would explain the expensive jewelry. I can't believe—why are you checking your phone?" I demanded as Mr. Wright pulled his phone out, staring at it for a few moments. He then looked at a paper he was holding, which I didn't notice before.

"I think the Bad Badger was also Apollo's blackmailer, too," he said, holding up the paper for me to see. I gasped in recognition.

It was the raffle slip Apollo filled out while we were on our date.

With his _cell number_. Mr. Wright must have been comparing the number to the one in his contacts for Apollo.

I frowned, carefully taking it, and the gloves from the Bad Badger suit.

"This means whoever was wearing this suit is the killer. I'm taking these all back to my lab. Maybe I can lift a print or something and get the decisive evidence we need to pin it on the real culprit," I said. Mr. Wright nodded.

"Okay. I'll come—" he was cut off by his phone going off. With a quick glance at the caller ID, he answered and lifted it to his ear.

"Hey Maya… What did he do _now_? … You're joking … Broken, probably. Did it turn purple and swell? … Of course … Alright, I'll meet you there. Love you … Bye." He hung up and looked at me.

"So… who did what now?" I asked.

"My son, Joshua. He," Mr. Wright sighed in exasperation. "He jumped off the first floor balcony of the manor to see if he could fly, and landed wrong. It looks like he broke his leg." he explained. I winced.

"Ouch. How high is that?"

"About six feet."

"Oh... He's what, three?" I asked, leading the way to the entrance. Mr. Wright nodded.

"Yep. And a daredevil, it seems." He sighed. "Will you be okay investigating this part on your own?"

"Mr. Wright. I'm a Forensic Scientist by trade. I think I'll be okay."

"Okay, okay," he said with a chuckle, before sighing once more.

"Can you give me a lift to Hickfield Clinic?"

…

Once dropping Mr. Wright off, I returned to my own apartment. Since becoming a Forensic Doctor, I moved out of the gloomy little flat over the Chinese restaurant, and into a nice two bedroom apartment. The master bedroom was the one I converted into a lab, and that's where I was heading now.

First, I studied the blood on the latex gloves. Before coming home, I managed to get Hunter to get me all of the forensic reports, such as the blood composition and type of the victim.

The blood on the gloves matched the victim's.

I then got to work on the other evidence; the Bad Badger's gloves, the raffle ticket, and the accounting report.

While the killer had been careful not to leave any prints on the murder weapon and bat (other then the victim's) he was a little less careful with the four pieces of evidence in front of me.

All four contained the same, unknown prints.

Prints so unknown, unfortunately, that a search through the LAPD's database didn't bring anything up.

The killer wasn't in the system.

"Damn," I sighed, before shaking my head and pulling the database up once more, getting a picture of Apollo's prints.

Even a blind person could tell the unknown prints didn't belong to him. That made me sigh in relief, and I sat back in my chair, rubbing my eyes.

"We'll catch this person yet," I mumbled.

 _Ring-ring! Ring-ring!_

I jumped slightly, looking at my cell. I didn't know the number, but that didn't matter.

"Hello?"

" _Hi. Is this Dr. Skye?_ " a vaguely familiar voice asked. I leaned further back in my computer chair, rocking it slightly.

"This is. May I ask who's calling?"

" _Robin Graves._ "

"Ah! Mr. Graves! Can I help you?" I said, leaning forward and grabbing a paper and pen, ready to take notes if necessary. I had the momentary wonder of how he got my number, before remembering both Mr. Wright and I had given him our cards.

" _Well, no, but it's about court today. About Mr. Hyde, actually_ ," he said. I nodded thoughtfully.

"Go on."

" _He's not Ms. Sokurblad's boyfriend."_

"WHAT!?" I gasped, nearly dropping the phone.

" _Ms. Sokurblad broke up with him about a month ago. Said that she couldn't handle the mood swings. She said it was hard though, since he works at the park, playing the Blue Badger and the Bad Badger_."

I stood up.

"He plays the… did you just say the Bad Badger?" I demanded into the phone.

" _Yes?_ " Mr. Graves sounded _very_ confused.

"Okay, um…" I looked at the gloves from the Bad Badger suit. Things were moving fast now, but I think I'm finally figuring out who the murderer was. "Did you call Mr. Wright?"

" _No. I tried, but I couldn't get a hold of him_."

 _Makes sense. Phone is probably off while they're in the hospital._

"Alright. Thank you _so_ much, Mr. Graves. I think you've just helped me blow this case wide open."

I hung up, leaned forward, and began to write notes for tomorrows trial.

…

A/N: Loose ends are starting to be tied up! YAY!

Also, this chapter references a bit from another of my stories, "The Golden Turnabout". Now, I realize this probably won't be a lot of your cups of tea, considering it's an _Uncharted_ crossover, but if you want to know the gist, shoot me a PM, and I'll summarize it for you!

Finally, Joshua Fey-Wright, along with his twin, Misty Fey-Wright, are Phoenix and Maya's three year old kids.

Two more chapter!


	10. Trial: Day 3

A/N: Here comes another chapter! Only one more after this!

Fun fact; what Phoenix describes going through with his son is almost exactly why my mom went through with me when I was three years old, and broke my leg (I fell down the stairs. I didn't try to fly.) Difference is, we got to go back home (we _didn't_ live in a remote village), and she's not a lawyer, she was working factory.

Yay inspiration?

…

Chapter Ten – Trial: Day 3

 _Phoenix_

 **August 7**

Apollo and I listened intently to Ema as she reported her findings to us before today's trial was scheduled to start.

I was exhausted.

Once meeting Maya, Joshua and Misty at the hospital, I had to spend four hours waiting for someone to come look at my son's leg.

Grant it, he wasn't an life-or-death emergency, but still, it was heart breaking, trying to comfort my three year-old all that time while he cried in pain. The Village nurse had wrapped it up, but still.

When the doctors finally took us back, complaining quietly amongst themselves about a car crash victim who refused treatment, it then took another two hours for them to actually do all the x-rays (which Josh was scared of; go figure), and finally get a cast and wheel-chair for him.

We didn't leave the hospital until around one in the morning, and even though we just crashed at the office, I spent all night awake, with Josh, who couldn't sleep thanks to his leg.

Today was going to be fun…

"Good work, Ema," I said with a tired smile. She nodded, and I took a deep breath, glancing at my watch. "Alright, guys. Last day." I smiled warmly at Apollo, pushing my exhaustion away. "Let's make it count."

…

"Court is now in session for the trial of Apollo Justice. Is the Prosecution ready?"

"Hmph."

The Judge looked at Blackquill for a moment before shrugging, evidently deciding to take that as a yes."

"Is the defense ready?"

"Yes, your honor. In fact, we'd like to call a witness," I said, starting out strong and trying to take control of the trial before Blackquill did.

"Oh?" the Judge asked, clearly surprised. Blackquill smirked.

"Wright-dono, is this a flight of fancy at doing the Prosecutor's job? I always thought yourself too proud as an attorney." he said.

 _There he goes with manipulation. He's trying to shame me into backing down. It's not going to work, though._

I smirked, planting my hands on my hips.

"I will do anything within legal means to prove my client innocent, Prosecutor Blackquill. Even if it means invoking the rarely used right of the defense to call a witness!" It was a shot at Blackquill, to show that his manipulation wasn't working on me, as well as a gentle reminder to the Judge.

"Ahem! That's right! Ah, yes, Mr. Wright. You may call your witness."

Blackquill shot me a glare that made me shiver. I pressed on anyways.

"The defense would like to call Mr. Robin Graves back to the stage!" I announced.

" _SILENCE!_ " Blackquill snapped. Something flashed by my face, causing me to jerk back. A lock of my own hair drifted down in front of me.

"EEK!" was Ema's response, while I tried to calm my racing heart.

"We already heard all the assistant had to say the other day!" Blackquill insisted. With a scowl, I threw my arm out, pointing at the prosecutor.

" _OBJECTION!_ That was before either investigation unveiled the information, or the evidence, we now have!" I slammed my hands down on the desk in front of me. "Mr. Robin Graves has vital information that could blow this case wide open!" I shot back.

"Hm… This court grants the defense's request."

In a few minutes, Robin Graves stood at the witness bench. His eyes were wide… almost scared looking, and he kept glancing over his shoulder at the gallery. His normally neatly hair was messy, and his black clothes looked a little rumpled.

He also wasn't wearing his glasses.

"Mr. Graves? Are you okay?" the Judge asked, taking in the twitchy way he kept rustling the papers on his clipboard.

"Hm? O-oh, um… yes."

"He's holding that arm very stiffly," Ema said softly from next to me. I glanced at her, then studied Mr. Graves again.

Sure enough, his left arm, despite holding the clipboard, looked very stiff.

"You're right. And he's scared," I replied.

"Think something happened?"

"Definitely."

Even Blackquill looked vaguely perturbed at the obvious nervousness of our witness. However, he still looked over at me.

"What will you have this witness testify about?"

"Mr. Graves," I said in what I hoped was a soothing tone. It worked on Joshua last night. "Could you please tell us about the blackmail letter Ms. Sokurblad received last week?"

Robin Graves winced like I punched him, and his already pale face went paler.

"I…" He glanced over his shoulder, so quick that I almost didn't notice it. "I know… nothing about any blackmail."

 _What the hell!?_ I thought as everyone in the gallery started muttering.

"What the hell!?" Ema hissed from beside me.

"ORDER! ORDER!" the Judge yelled, slamming his gavel. "Mr. Graves! It was you who—"

"I don't know anything about it!" he insisted, his voice cracking.

 _He's scared. Really scared. But of what?_

" _OBJECTION!_ " I yelled, getting everyone's attention. "The defense would like to request a fifteen minute recess!"

"Mr. Wright!?" the Judge asked.

"Please, Your Honor. Just fifteen minutes. That's all I ask."

"I… well, Mr. Blackquill? Any objections?" he asked, looking at the prosecutor. I locked eyes with Blackquill, silently pleading. Despite how annoying and scary he could be, I knew Blackquill was a man of the truth, just as I was.

He gave the slightest nod.

"None, You Baldness."

"Well, okay. Court will now take a fifteen minute recess!" he slammed the gavel down once. "Not that it's even been fifteen minutes in yet," he added in a mutter. I swiftly walked around the defense bench, over to Robin Graves, and wrapped a gentle arm around him before anyone else could talk to him, leading him out. Ema and Apollo were hot on my heels.

"Mr. Graves, what's going on?" I asked in the same soothing tone from before. "What happened?"

He winced slightly. "Nothing…"

A sudden movement from my peripheral caught my attention, and I looked over to where Apollo had his hand on where his bracelet would normally sit (if it wasn't evidence). So attuned were his senses now, he didn't need it for his eyes to switch to red. He was staring intently at Graves's left shoulder.

"Mr. Graves, when you say nothing happened, the muscles in your left shoulder tense, almost as though against pain. Something happened, having to do with that shoulder of yours," Apollo perceived. There was a clatter, and I turned back to the man in question to see his eyes wide. He had dropped the clipboard, which had caused the clatter, and was gripping his left shoulder.

"What happened?" Ema asked softly. Graves closed his eyes for a moment, before slowly pulling his shirt up.

"I was… attacked last night…" he muttered, though the words were totally unnecessary. His ribs were bruised pretty badly. Despite an odd one or two, I recognized a pattern. One long bruise, crossing from his left shoulder to his right hip, and another, crossing his stomach, just above the waistband.

"Those are from a seatbelt. You were in a car crash. Were you the one who refused treatment?" I asked, looking up at him. He started in surprise.

"How…?"

"My son broke his leg, so I was in the hospital last night. While there, I overheard a few doctors talking about a 'car crash victim who refused treatment.'" I explained.

"Mr. Wright, those don't look like they're from the crash," Apollo said, pointing to a few.

"They weren't," Graves said. "I was on my way home, after calling you, Dr. Skye, when a large pick-up truck suddenly swerved into my lane and hit me head on. The driver pulled me out of the car and… attacked me… He dislocated my left shoulder and kept kicking me and told me if I ever spoke of the blackmail letter again… h-he'd find me… and kill me." His face lost all color now as he let his shirt drop back in place, and he was shaking.

"Robin," I said gently, taking the man's shoulders carefully. I turned him to face me. "Whoever did this to you won't be able to hurt you again. Who was it? What did he look like?"

"I don't know. He was wearing a mask…" Graves said softly. Everything suddenly went dark, except for myself and Mr. Graves. Chains surrounded the young man, and five, sturdy, red Psyche-locks slammed into place. Each one full of fear.

I looked down at the floor with a scowl. The recess was only fifteen minutes long, and I probably didn't even have the evidence to break them.

But the truth was painfully clear. Robin Graves knew who attacked him, but was too scared to say.

"Well, it's obvious, isn't it?" Apollo asked, prompting all three of us to look at him. "Whoever attacked and threatened Mr. Graves is the one who was doing the blackmail in the first place."

"Which would be the killer as well," Ema added. The three of us looked at Graves again. He was still pale, and shaken.

"Ema," I said, watching the man in front of me.

"Hm?"

"Once trial is over today, would it be possible to place Mr. Graves in protective custody?"

"Of course. I'll make the call now," she said, stepping away. I nodded, watching Graves's face. He looked after Ema, before looking up at me.

"If I… I'll be protected?" he asked softly. I smiled warmly.

"Yes."

He hesitated a moment longer, reached up as though to adjust his glasses, and stopped when finding them missing. He then leaned down, picking up the clip board.

"I will… I will testify…" he said softly.

…

"Is your witness willing to testify now, Mr. Wright?" the Judge asked. I nodded once.

"Yes, but only after being promised that once this trial was over, he'll go into protective custody," I replied.

"Protective custody!? Why?" the Judge demanded.

"He was attacked last night. Coerced into silence," I explained, causing another uproar. Mr. Graves looked over his shoulder, slower this time, and I managed to see who he locked eyes with.

Jacky Hyde.

"He was lying about the mask," Ema hissed.

"I know. I'm sure Apollo knows too."

The Judge finally regained order, then nodded to Mr. Graves.

"Whenever you're ready."

"Well… As Ms. Sokurblad's assistant, I am in charge of bringing her the letter from her company mailbox," Graves said in a bit stronger voice then I was expecting. I nodded once to him before clearing my throat slightly.

" _Hold it!_ Company mailboxes?" I asked.

"In the break area of the park, there is a set of mailboxes for each of the department heads. They're used for any mail sent to the park, or memos, or stuff like that," Graves explained. I nodded.

"Continue."

"This envelope was spooky, but I thought it just fit for Ms. Ivana."

" _Hold it!_ Spooky how?"

"Well, I've never seen a black envelope before," Graves admitted.

 _Really? Even with how gothic you seem?_

"It was clearly addressed to her, using just her first name, Ivana. No one at the park calls her that."

"Why did it have to be someone from the park?" Blackquill demanded.

"Because there was no return address either."

"That is spooky!" the Judge gasped.

"What happened next?" I asked.

"When she opened the letter, she nearly fainted…"

" _Hold it!_ Did you get to see this letter?" I demanded.

"I didn't find out what it said until I gave it to you, Mr. Wright, and you read it out loud. Now knowing the contents… I don't blame her. I just… don't know what she was doing wrong either…" Mr. Graves looked down at his clipboard sadly, and I realized that he had looked up to Ivana Sokurblad.

I almost didn't have the heart to tell him.

"Please, continue," the Judge said, seeming to share my thoughts.

"There is… there is only… one person… who I could think of… that would do this…" His voice started to tremble again slightly.

" _Hold it!_ Would this be the same one who attacked you, Mr. Graves? This is vital. We need to know this," I pressed, gently, but firmly. Mr. Graves glanced behind him, into the gallery, and froze.

I followed his gaze, and gasped softly.

Jacky Hyde had originally been sitting next to the door, in the back. While Graves was giving his testimony, he must have moved seats.

Now he sat directly behind Graves, with only the low partition to separate him. On Hyde's face was a look of pure, cold fury. His scar was clearly visible.

"I-I don't know," Graves choked out. "I don't know who attacked me. I don't know who wrote that letter. I have no idea!"

"Mr. Graves! What is this all of a sudden? Need I remind you that you are under oath?" the Judge demanded. But Graves stayed clammed up. His eyes locked on mine, and I could see fear and… pleading.

"Your Honor!" I snapped, slamming my hands down. Everyone turned to me. I was doing the only thing I could think of. "The defense has one more question for the witness, then we request that he step down."

"What? But he hasn't even answered your—"

"I retract that question for one that I think my witness will be able to answer!" I said. The judge hesitated a moment longer before nodding.

"Alright. Go ahead, Mr. Wright."

"Mr. Graves," I said soothingly. He was still giving me those pleading eyes.

"Y-yes?"

"Who wears the Bad Badger suit at Gatewater Land?"

" _SILENCE_! What does this have to do with the murder!?" Blackquill demanded. I scowled.

"Everything!" I yelled, before turning back to Robin Graves. He looked at me a moment longer, before taking a deep breath. "Who, Mr. Graves?"

"I… um…" he took another deep breath. "M-Mr. Jacky Hyde." With those words, he darted around the witness stand and through a side door that lead to the Witness Lobby.

"What in the world?" the Judge gasped. I wasn't watching after Graves though. The instant he went through that door, one of the gallery members stood, heading for the exit himself.

"I call Mr. Jacky Hyde to the stand!"

Hyde froze

My head snapped around. I wasn't the one who said that.

Blackquill was glaring at the man, daring him to refuse.

"That would be you, if I'm not mistaken," he said.

 _Scary voice…_ I thought, looking between the prosecutor and Hyde.

"I refuse," Hyde snapped.

Blackquill started laughing, slamming the desk with his palm.

"You refuse? And, pray tell, how did you think that was a request? I simply want you to disprove what we all know the defense is going to claim." The honey tone was back in Blackquill's voice. Hyde hesitated, looking between the door, myself, Apollo, and Blackquill.

"Fine."

With this one word, he came down to the front of the courtroom and took his place at the stand, and I smirked.

I don't know what Blackquill's angle is, but he just made this case a lot easier.

"Name and occupation," Blackquill demanded once Hyde was at the stand.

"Jacky Hyde. I play the Blue Badger and the Bad Badger at Gatewater Land," he said.

"Good. Now, tell us why the killer couldn't possibly be you."

"I love Ivana. I could never kill her!" Hyde said, starting with the most cliché line in any courtroom thriller. I didn't even bother.

"And even if I wanted to, I was running around the park as the Blue Badger."

 _And here's the alibi._

" _Hold it!_ Do you have anyone who could verify this?" I asked.

"Well, because I wear a mask as part of my uniform, I guess you can't verify it's me in the costume, but I'm usually the only one who wears the Blue and Bad Badger suits," he explained.

 _Oh really now? That's interesting…_

"Finally, I have no reason to blackmail Ivana, and no idea what the defendant's cell number is. How could I?"

"Mr. Wright!" Ema hissed, and I nodded.

" _OBJECTION!_ " I yelled, pointing at the witness. "You just said that you are the only one who wears the Bad Badger suit, right?"

"Yes?" he asked, suddenly sounding unsure of himself. I smirked.

"If that's the case, then I know exactly how you knew Mr. Justice's number." I slapped Apollo's raffle slip down on the desk in front of me. "This has the defendant's phone number on it. And it was found in the Bad Badger's suit yesterday."

"What!?"

"Not only this, but the defense has found three other pieces of evidence yesterday," I said, pulling out the latex gloves, the Bad Badger gloves, and the accounting report, laying them next to the raffle slip. "The blood on these gloves belongs to the victim, and there are matching fingerprints on all four of these."

"Whose?" Blackquill demanded. Ema decided to step up then.

"They're unknown as of the current moment. Whoever they belong to, that person is not in the LAPD database," she explained.

"Don't we get the fingerprints of everyone involved with the case?" the Judge asked.

"Yes, You Baldness." Blackquill seemed like he was finally getting the picture. And wasn't happy about it. "But it takes twenty-four hours to add them to the database, and we didn't even know of this man's existence until yesterday," he replied. I saw my chance.

"The defense moves to formally indict Mr. Jacky Hyde for the murder of Ivana Sokurblad, and demands that he submits a sample of his fingerprints to the court so that we can compare them!" I said, pointing at Jacky Hyde. He bowed his head forward, his shoulder's shaking.

"Um, Mr. Hyde?" the Judge asked.

"You want my prints?" he asked, and I could hear crazed laughter in his voice. Ema and I glanced at each other.

We both knew what was coming.

Hyde's laughter became more prominent, until finally, he threw back his head, having a mental breakdown. He laughed hard, the scar on his cheek fully visible.

"I guess the truth will come out no matter what now! Yes! _I_ blackmailed Ivana! _I_ killed Ivana! _I_ blackmailed that stupid attorney! _I_ threatened Graves to shut him up!"

He suddenly froze. His eyes locked on the door leading to the witness lobby, his eyes growing cold with fury.

I knew what was about to happen.

"Stop him!" I yelled, milliseconds before Hyde threw himself around the stand and rushed towards the door. The bailiff wasn't fast enough.

Hyde threw open the door.

And met the muzzle of Detective Klu Hunter's sidearm.

"Freeze! Hands in the air!" he snapped. Hyde stepped back, only for his arms to be pinned behind his back by the bailiff, who began to read him his rights, dragging him out. I looked back a Klu Hunter, surprised by his appearance.

"What is he doing here?" I asked, before correcting myself. "Well, there…"

"I asked him to stand guard over the witness lobby, and Robin Graves," Ema said from next to me. "I had a feeling something like that would happen once we revealed Hyde."

"Wow. That was… exciting…" the Judge mumbled, his eyes wide. He then shook his head. "And informative. It seems Mr. Justice was not the killer after all… but if he did love Ms. Sokurblad, then why did he kill her?"

"I believe he felt insulted when she broke up with him. He showed signs of being very unstable," I said.

"The curse of love," Blackquill said with a smirk.

"Either way, it doesn't matter. It is now time to pass down my verdict. In the case of Apollo Justice, for the murder of Ivana Sokurblad, I find the defendant… _Not Guilty!_ "

We filed into the Defendant Lobby. Ema was excited, and Apollo looked totally relieved.

"We won! We won! We proved your innocence!" Ema cheered, before grabbing the front of Apollo's shirt and yanking him into a kiss. His eyes were wide for a moment, but he quickly melted into it, wrapping his arms around her and kissing her back. I shook my head.

' _Bout time…_

The doors opened. Looking up, I saw Trucy, Athena, and Apollo's parents walk in, and smiled, knowing what was coming.

"Ap—" Thalassa started, but cut off. Athena and Trucy gave creepy, matching smirks.

"Ooo! Apollo and Ema, sitting in a tree! K-I-S-S-I-N-G!"

Groan. "TRUCY! ATHENA!"

…

A/N: One more chapter!


	11. Another Date

A/N: Hey guys! Here we go with the last chapter! Then it's packing my crap up to go back to school…

Well, you _might_ get one more oneshot out of me. No promises!

…

Chapter Eleven – Another Date

 _Apollo_

 **A Month Later**

 **September 5**

You'd think, after the disastrous Gatewater Land date, neither Ema or I would want to go to another amusement park, carnival, or fair.

But, here we were, at the Street Fair on Gourdy Ave, enjoying Labor Day together.

"That ride was a lot of fun!" Ema laughed as we got off of the death trap known as the "Zipper".

"Heh… yeah…" I mumbled, arguing with my stomach about tasting lunch for a second time. Ema grinned, looping her arm through mine.

"Still not good with going upside down?" she asked. I chuckled weakly.

 _Never._

"No."

"Well, then you need to face your fear more!" Ema laughed, dragging me forward.

"Wait, wait!" I groaned, but she didn't listen.

"Quite the firecracker you got there!" one of the carney's from a game booth said. I looked over to see him looking at me. "How about you test your luck, and win the lucky lady a prize?"

Seeing my chance to escape more torture, I grinned.

"Come on, Ema. I want to play," I said, pointing. She looked over, and smiled.

"Okay."

The objective of this game was to throw the softball, and knock down the bottles.

Seemed easy enough.

Once paying, I weighed the softball in my hand thoughtfully, studying the pyramid of bottles. It was heavier then I expected, which means gravity will probably make it drop down.

Taking a deep breath and aiming for the top of the structure, I threw the ball.

And I was right! It dropped down enough to slam into the bottom of the pyramid, sending all of the bottles crashing to the ground.

"And you're a winner!" the man bellowed. "Well, son, what will it be?"

I looked up at all of the stuffed animals. There were teddy-bears, Blue Badgers ( _No._ ), big cats, and long snakes.

I had no idea what to get Ema.

"Which do you want?" I asked. She looked at me in surprise before smiling and pointing to a big, red teddy bear.

"That one."

"Good choice, good choice, little lady!" the man boomed, and she grinned. He pulled it down, handing it to her. She grinned even more, wrapping her arms around it, and I couldn't help but laugh.

"What?" she demanded with that adorable little pout of hers.

"It's almost bigger then you," I pointed out. She laughed as well.

"That's true!" she said. I grinned, wrapping an arm around her, and walking. Before I could suggest anything though, one of the food booths caught her attention.

"Deep... fried... Snackeroos?"

"That sounds... interesting..." I mumbled.

"Let's try it!" she said, darting out from under my arm and too the both. I laughed, following her, and buying an order of six. They were... interesting, but definitely not for me. I think Ema was secretly ecstatic at that, since I left her with the remaining five.

"So, how about we ride the Farris Wheel next?" I suggested once she was done eating, and she laughed at me.

"Oh, alright," she playfully grumbled.

The ride was both relaxing and run. At the top, we got a beautiful view of Gourdy Lake ( _Wow, it's actually kind of shaped like a gourd!_ ) and the surrounding park. Ema leaned against my arm, interlocking her fingers with mine, and I smiled warmly, leaning over to kiss the top of her head.

This was, by no means, our second date. We'd done other things, like go to the movies, or the beach, and unless I was eating with my family, or working late, we'd wind up at each other's apartments for dinner.

There were even times we'd bring dinner to the other if they were working late.

I was so happy. I finally had my family _and_ a girlfriend.

"Hi guys!" a peppy blond said as we got off the Farris Wheel. We looked over. "Would you like to sign up for the raffle?"

My thoughts immediately jumped back to how Jacky Hyde got my number, and Ema and I glanced at each other.

"No thanks," Ema said with a smile, before pulling me along, somehow managing to hold the bear in her other arm.

"Whoa!" I laughed. "Where are we going?"

"To the lake, duh! The sun's starting to set, and we need a good spot."

"Oh yeah!"

We found our good spot, right down by the water. People were slowly starting to come in, finding seats for themselves as well. I pulled Ema close, wrapping my arms tightly around her. She grinned, snuggling into my chest.

"It's been an amazing day," she sighed. I smiled warmly.

"And it's not over," I reminded her, kissing the top of her head. She looked up to say something.

 _BOOM!_

Both of our heads snapped towards the lake, just in time to see the colorful sparks rain down over the water.

"The fireworks!" Ema gasped excitedly.

"They're starting!" I finished her thought, just as excited.

She snuggled into my chest more as we watched the Labor Day fireworks over the lake, enjoying each other's warmth.

 _She's right. Today is amazing._

…

A/N: Thus, the end of this tale of love, danger, and… okay, I'll stop. Can't even type that with a straight face, hehe!

Like I said, you _might_ get another oneshot out of me. No promises.


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